by unSeminary: Welcome to this week’s unSeminary podcast. Today I’m talking with Bruce Miller, senior pastor of Christ Fellowship in Texas.

Today we’ll be talking to Bruce about his book Leading a Church in a Time of Sexual
Questioning.

Reach out. // Bruce mentions that the idea for the book came from his encounters with people who felt rejected by the church and Christian people. The book encourages Christians to own up in their responsibility to reach out in ways they haven’t. Be full of both grace and truth. // It seems that most churches want to be either a church of grace or a church of truth. But Jesus came to earth full of grace and full of truth. Truth is gracious and grace speaks truth—grace and truth come together in love. Jesus hung out with “notorious sinners” and they were drawn to Him like a moth to flame. The body of Christ needs to more fully follow Jesus and His walk in His footsteps.Extend the welcome. // Jesus modeled that while we are to be full of both grace and truth, grace comes first in practical pastoral ministry to others. Most LGBTQ people believe that Christians hate them and some have been mistreated by Christians. It will be a surprise to them to be welcomed to a church. We have to extend the welcome to them much more strongly than with the average person. Go to greater lengths. // You can have a difference in your beliefs on certain things in life, but still come together to worship Jesus. Bruce shares a story of a lesbian couple who was interested in attending the church, and he offered an opportunity to meet with them and hear their stories in person. During that time Bruce explained what the church believed, but told the couple they were still welcome to come and be a part of the church, and they did. Talk with LGBTQ people to learn about their lives and their desire to connect with God rather than making a snap judgement towards them. It’s about building a relationship with people.Put love first. // If a leader in your church comes forward as part of an LGBTQ lifestyle, put love first and listen deeply to their story and what they have to say so that you know what you’re dealing with. The leaders of the church need to be in unity on what the church believes. If a leader changes their position and you are really on different pages, then it wouldn’t make sense for that person to stay in a leadership position at a church they don’t agree with.We are all sinners. // In his book, Bruce writes about practical steps in dealing with these situations. The big question to ask is how to treat LGBTQ people at your church. They are human beings created in the image of God and Bruce says that they should therefore be treated like other people. Are you going to add something different to situations in church if the person is LGBTQ? Will they not be baptized, even though Jesus went to sinners in all situations and baptized them? Or have they trusted in Jesus Christ and is that enough? Will there be double standards?Love doesn’t compromise truth. // When writing his book, Bruce was impressed to find that love doesn’t compromise truth. When you open your arms and welcome everyone, you still aren’t compromising theology, but you are showing Jesus’s love. Association doesn’t communicate affirmation. Jesus hung out with sinners throughout the New Testament. But associating with these sinners doesn’t mean that you approve and affirm their sins, as neither did Jesus. Provide more robust training. // In situations such as student ministry, there are additional layers of complexity when it comes to conversations about sex and sexuality. Bruce emphasizes the importance of doing more coaching with student lay leaders or those who might lead small groups. The issues are more difficult so take time to provide extra training. Additionally Christ Fellowship wants to create a climate where students can be open about their sexual struggles. Lastly be sure to inform the parents in advance so they know what’s coming when you plan to talk with students about sex, and invite them to be a part of it.Check your theology on sexuality and singleness. // Bruce notes that sometimes our message to those in the LGBTQ community who are trying to follow Jesus is because you have to be single and you can’t have sex, you’re going to have a rough life. That view betrays a terrible vision for people; firstly it is a terrible theology of singleness, and secondly it betrays an overblown view of sexuality as if sex is essential for a good life. Life without Jesus is a deficient life, but you can have a great life without sex.

You can learn more about Bruce and his book Leading a Church in the Time of Sexual Questioning at his website brucebmiller.com. You can learn more about Christian Fellowship at cfhome.org.

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Source: Leading Your Church In This Time of Sexual Questioning with Bruce Miller

The post Leading Your Church In This Time of Sexual Questioning with Bruce Miller appeared first on Passion for Planting.

by Dave Travis: Here’s a collection of interesting, thought-provoking articles from around the web from recent weeks. For more links, check out our Flipboard magazines: Leadership Network Today, Leadership Network Deep Trends, and  Ideas to Implementation to Impact, where we curate the best in innovative ideas for church leaders.

Multicultural Churches are Addressing Racial Divides in Trump’s America (Thinkprogress.org) As widespread reports of racial harassment and white supremacist activity continue across the country, the small, but growing, number of racially integrated churches are organizing. They’re organizing workshops, serving immigrants, and vowing to stand in solidarity with Muslims. In this difficult political climate, they contend that they are uniquely qualified to foster dialogue about race and advocate for marginalized groups?—?and bring diverse groups of Americans together in faith.
The Large Parts of America Left Behind By Today’s Economy (Axios.com)U.S. geographical economic inequality is growing, meaning your economic opportunity is more tied to your location than ever before. A large portion of the country is being left behind by today’s economy, according to a county-by-county report released this morning by the Economic Innovation Group, a non-profit research and advocacy organization.

The Extraordinary Case of Mr Yamazaki (Medium.com) What happened when a Japanese headteacher imported his ‘Hitaisho’ teaching method to a rural Cornish primary school?

It’s Not a Problem to Solve It’s a Polarity to Manage (Organizationalphysics.com) As a leader, being able to discern the difference between a problem and a polarity will help you to build a culture that makes the right decisions about the right things. This is true even if, from an uneducated eye, those efforts can sometimes appear to be in support of “old” ways of thinking. But they are not old ways of thinking! You are just boosting up an aspect of a polarity that is needed in your organization at this period in time. Later on, you may boost up “new” ways of thinking, depending again on what’s really needed. Let’s see how to do that…

Life In a Fishbowl Survey Gives Voice to Pastors’ Spouses (Religionnews.com) The vast majority of U.S. Protestant pastors’ spouses say ministry has had a positive effect on their families but many report being isolated and under financial stress. A new LifeWay Research survey, released Tuesday (Sept. 12), finds that most spouses are directly involved in the work of their churches, with 1 in 5 holding a paid position and two-thirds serving in unpaid capacities.

What Would Jesus Disrupt (Bloomberg.com) “The most successful startup in history!” Of the parable of the talents, in which two servants are lauded by their master for turning a profit with money he staked them: “The first recorded instance of venture capital and investment banking in history!” Of ancient business elites: “A church is the oldest marketplace in the history of the world.” Of the promised land of angel investing, where divinely inspired entrepreneurs dwell: “Because God creates things, too!” Mark Burnett, the producer of The Apprentice and Shark Tank, shows up to remind everyone that “the Bible is full of merchants and people doing work.”

The Turquoise Table Movement Wants You (Christianitytoday.com) As she sat outside every morning praying, she began to meet people she had lived next to for years. “I started learning the difference between entertaining and hospitality,” Schell says. “Entertainment… you can’t do all the time, you can’t do that at every opportunity. Hospitality is a way of life. It’s not what we’re doing; it’s who we are.”

Survey Spotlights American Views On Sin (Bpnews.net) As America becomes more secular, the idea of sin still rings true, said Scott McConnell, executive director of Nashville-based LifeWay Research. “Almost nobody wants to be a sinner,” he said. The survey question about sin was inspired in part by an exchange McConnell witnessed on his way to a Nashville Predators hockey game. A religious group of protesters began preaching at people on the street outside the hockey arena, calling them sinners, McConnell said. That led a few people in the crowd to embrace the title with enthusiasm. “I wondered how many people really think of themselves as sinners,” he said.

What the Single in Your Pew Needs From You (Christianitytoday.com) Singles are on the rise. Here’s what forward-looking churches need to know.

Life.Church Digerati Ship-It Week (Medium.com) To create an atmosphere that welcomes people, that meets people right where they are, you have to inject a little human-ness into a website, and they did that through a ‘blue button.’ It’s a chat-like integration that allows team members or volunteers to talk with people, answer questions, and pray with people in real time. They even created a set of custom premade interactions that…

The post What Would Jesus Disrupt and Other Articles Church Leaders Should Read appeared first on Leadership Network.

Source: What Would Jesus Disrupt and Other Articles Church Leaders Should Read

The post What Would Jesus Disrupt and Other Articles Church Leaders Should Read appeared first on Passion for Planting.